Delivering for charity: Royal Mail Group raises £2 million for Prostate Cancer UK

Royal Mail Group and its employees have raised over £2 million for Prostate Cancer UK, the company’s Charity of the Year

The milestone comprises £1 million raised by colleagues and £1 million of matched giving provided by the company

Money raised by the company and its employees will fund 34 prostate cancer specialist nurses, supporting men and their families affected by the disease across the UK

Royal Mail is celebrating the achievement with a special postmark that will be printed on millions of items of mail and delivered to addresses across the UK

Royal Mail Group has reached a milestone in its support of Prostate Cancer UK, raising over £2 million for the charity.

The significant amount has been raised thanks to the fundraising efforts of employees from across Royal Mail and Parcelforce Worldwide. It also includes penny for penny matched giving by Royal Mail Group too.

Royal Mail is celebrating the achievement with a special postmark that will feature on millions of items of mail delivered to addresses across the UK. The postmark will be printed on mail for the next two weeks and will say ‘Well done to Royal Mail Group employees for raising £2 million for Prostate Cancer UK’.

Our partnership

Royal Mail Group’s fundraising programme with Prostate Cancer UK began in earnest in September 2012 after it was chosen to be the company’s Charity of the Year partner by employees in a staff vote.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in men in the UK. Over 40,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year and one man dies from the disease every hour.

Money raised by the company and its employees will fund 34prostate cancer specialist nurses, 13of whom have already been employed, supporting men and their families affected by the disease. These nurses are based across England, Scotland and Wales.

Royal Mail Chief Executive Officer, Moya Greene, said: “We’re delighted that we have been able to raise such a significant amount for Prostate Cancer UK. This is because our people have taken the charity to their heart and dedicated themselves to fundraising activities. Thanks to their efforts we’ve been able to make a real difference to the charity’s work and funded nurses who are helping men and their families affected by the disease.

“We’re proud of what we have achieved and hope our efforts will provide a lasting legacy for the charity.”

Since the partnership began, employees across the UK have taken part in a range of fundraising activities including marathons, bikes rides and hikes.

Over £925,000 was raised through our Movember campaigns in 2012 and 2013. In both years, Royal Mail Group raised more money than any other single company network globally.

The company has also been raising awareness of the disease to around 150,000 employees through a series of health road shows, information sessions, literature and special videos.

Owen Sharp, Chief Executive at Prostate Cancer UK, added: “We are thrilled to reach this milestone in our partnership with Royal Mail, with a phenomenal £2million raised. This is testament to the dedication of Royal Mail and its employees who have embraced this partnership, and gone above and beyond to exceed its target.

“Our thanks go to everyone at Royal Mail who has helped to raise such an incredible amount. It is with support like this that we can help provide dedicated support and information to men and their families affected by the disease.”

Now that Royal Mail Group and its employees have raised £2 million for Prostate Cancer UK, the company will now provide matched giving for funds raised for Alzheimer’s Society and Whizz-Kidz as well Prostate Cancer UK, up to a further £1 million.

Jane Ellison MP, Minister for Public Health, commented: “I am deeply grateful to the hard work of the team at Royal Mail for their fundraising efforts around prostate cancer.

“Working to progress research into pioneering cancer treatments, raising awareness around signs and symptoms of cancer and improving the quality of lives for those who have cancer continues to be one of our top priorities.

“This is a significant amount of money and is this is sure to go a long way to changing people’s lives across the UK.”

In 2012–13, Royal Mail contributed £9.5 million directly to charities, good causes and schemes for disadvantaged groups

In addition, our colleagues raised almost £3.2 million for many good causes across the UK

Following a successful partnership with the children’s charity Barnardo’s, in March 2012 our colleagues voted to support Prostate Cancer UK as our new Charity of the Year partner from 2012 to 2014

About Royal Mail plc

Royal Mail plc is the parent company of Royal Mail Group Limited, the leading provider of postal and delivery services in the UK and the UK’s designated universal postal service provider. UK Parcels, International and Letters (“UKPIL”) comprises the company’s UK and international parcels and letters delivery businesses operating under the “Royal Mail” and “Parcelforce Worldwide” brands. Through the Royal Mail Core Network, the company delivers a one-price-goes-anywhere service on a range of parcels and letters products. Royal Mail has the capability to deliver to more than 29 million addresses in the UK, six days a week (excluding UK public holidays). Parcelforce Worldwide operates a separate UK network which collects and delivers express parcels. Royal Mail also owns General Logistics Systems (GLS) which operates one of the largest ground-based, deferred parcel delivery networks in Europe.

About Prostate Cancer UK:

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in men in the UK. Every year in the UK over 40,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer. One man dies every hour from prostate cancer. 250,000 UK men are currently living with the disease. 1 in 8 men will get prostate cancer in the UK. One in four Black men will develop prostate cancer at some point in their lives.

If you have concerns about prostate cancer please call Prostate Cancer UK's confidential Helpline on 0800 074 8383 or visit www.prostatecanceruk.org. The helpline is free to landlines, staffed by specialist nurses, and open from 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday with late opening until 8pm on Wednesdays.

Prostate Cancer UK’s latest campaign: Men United

Men United v Prostate Cancer is Prostate Cancer UK’s latest campaign, calling for men to join together in a movement against the common enemy of prostate cancer. The aim is to build a united front of men against this disease. We want to get the message out about one of the UK’s biggest man killers, support men affected by it, and intensify the search for more reliable tests and treatments for the future.

The core audience is men over 45 who urgently need to know about this disease, and to do something about it. Men United is not exclusively for men. This is a movement for men, but women will be critical supporters and activists within it. But, the core idea is that men are very consciously facing their health and banding together to right a wrong. Whether they’ve been diagnosed or are simply concerned about prostate cancer, men can find out about the disease at www.prostatecanceruk.org.